Break Your Plateau Cycle

long rests

Here's one most bodybuilders love: not doing anything. Yes, this is considered a plateau-breaker and a good one too! Okay, there's more to it than just sitting on the couch all day, but the fundamental principle around this plateau-breaker is resting.

Overtraining is a reality in bodybuilding. Too much exercise is unhealthy; the body needs time to heal. Sometimes, muscles need a lot of time to heal. If you have been working out for months straight (including those rest days in between cycles), then your body could use a week off every now and then. Yes, a whole week off!

Working out too much for long periods could lead to muscular fatigue. Long rests are like vacations from bodybuilding. You take about a week off and when you come back to the gym, your muscles will be so sore that you'll question why you even go through all of this in the first place. You will also notice significant muscle gain.

forced reps

Forced repetitions are having somebody spot you while you push through a set heavier than you're normally accustomed to. Your last reps often end with the spotter helping you out so you can finish your set.

Forced reps are effective; they shock the muscles and can help you break through a plateau, but because of their efficiency, most guys at the gym overuse it. It only works when you have a spotter help you out every now and then; this will shock the muscle.

pyramiding

Pyramiding is a very exhaustive technique. It revolves around bodybuilding's fundamental principle of adding more weight to each following set. Pyramiding is simply a more extreme variation of this principle.

Start out lifting light (15 reps) then add more weight for each consecutive set. Lower the repetitions for each set since they get heavier. A classic pyramid would look something like this:

15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2 reps. Each time, add more weight so that you execute each set to failure (i.e. you can't perform another rep).

When you use this method, you usually drop a few exercises from your routine because this single exercise counts for two. It hurts like hell, and by the end you might feel like a fool because you're barely able to make 2 reps. But the sure thing is that it's going to make you grow.

partials

This one's a classic Joe Weider principle proponed by the Great Arnold himself; when lifting weights, every now and then you'll reach a sticking point. A sticking point is when you can't lift anymore despite the fact that you are not feeling a burn or fatigue. Your muscle still has the energy, but it just doesn't want to move — it just sticks there.

The theory, and the barrier-breaking principle behind it, is to keep lifting even if you can't make a full repetition. If your body wants to stick at a certain point, give it what it wants but keep pushing yourself until you finish your desired amount of reps. If it means only lifting halfway, then that's what you will do, hence the name partials .